Phones + Driving = Just Don’t by Brianna

Phones + Driving = Just Don’t by Brianna - March 2017 Scholarship Essay

Every day I leave school and I see my peers on their phones while driving, even while still in the parking lot. Some will be talking, others will be texting. Some sneak a quick peak to change the music, others take a quick picture for snapchat. I’m constantly overwhelmed by the number of teenagers who can’t put their phones down for the few moments they are behind the wheel.

Teenagers often have this idea in their heads that they are invincible and seem to think, Something like that could never happen to me. This mere thought of exclusion is the source of the problem. Teenagers, of all ages, don’t recognize the dangers of getting in any automobile in the first place. Let alone how much the danger escalates when mixing in a distracted driver. Car accidents kill nearly 1.3 million people each year and kill around 3,287 people a day. That is overall, but when focused towards teenagers, car accidents become the leading cause of death, and is more likely to occur within this age group than any other.

Yet, they do it any way.

No matter how many times teachers, administration, parents, and other respectable adults warn them, they never learn. They continue to behave carelessly: driving and allowing themselves to be distracted. As a result, it has become a common thought to assume that any teen involved in a car accident was on their phone.

This is NOT okay.

It shouldn’t be acceptable to automatically think that phones were involved. But it is. And it is because it is such a common thing in this day and age that people don’t usually think twice about it.

Things need to change.

Teenagers need to realize that they are not invincible, that any automobile is dangerous, no matter who is behind the wheel, and that texting and driving is unacceptable. The obsession with phones is ridiculous. Like mentioned earlier, I have seen my peers on their phones while driving before they have even been able to leave the parking lot. They couldn’t even go a moment without their device. Before they got in the car, or even before they put the car in drive, they were probably on their phone. Then, a few moments later, there they are again on their phones, but this time, they’re trying to operate a vehicle at the same time.

However, teens are not the only ones who fall to temptation. Adults are just as much at fault as the younger generation. I have seen my educators, my parents, and plenty of other adults whom are strangers to me on their phones while driving. This society has become accustomed to devices being used as distractors. I know that I’m not the only teenager who witnesses the people who tell us not to do something, do the exact action they are discerning. Do as you say, not as you do, doesn’t always work. When these people who commit the actions they warn students about, the impact is lessened. It’s hard to listen to someone who is hypocritical. Adults cannot expect an out-ragingly positive outcome if they preach when they too fall to the electronic age.

I do admit that I am not omitted from this temptation, but NEVER while driving. When I drive, I have found a way to remove the need or temptation while driving to look at my phone. Before leaving for my next destination, I ensure that I set up my music playlist, I text my parents that I’m on the move, I tell my friends to wait since I will be unavailable for the next few moments, and I turn my phone upside down and away so I cannot see it or its notifications. Out of sight, out of mind.

There are plenty of solutions to this problem, but to be able to find them, humanity must first admit that there is a problem. Our society seems to live in a state of denial about this controversial topic. Eyes need to be open. Mouths need to speak up. Minds need to realize. Actions need to happen. The student body needs to change.